El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron Reviews
As this new and improved version shows, El Shaddai ASCENSION OF THE METATRON HD Remaster is still very much a game for a very specific niche. Beautiful visuals and an inventive story can only take you so far; at some point the gameplay needs to be there too, and as you’ll see time and again, that’s not the case here.
El Shaddai ASCENSION OF THE METATRON HD Remaster updates to HD one of the most peculiar titles from the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Though the title inspired by Enoch's book isn't immune to occasional performance issues on Switch, this is an excellent reminder that experimentation and establishing connections to art should be more valued in the game industry instead of being left only to indie works. Overall, if you'd like to relive this adventure or to know it personally, Nintendo's console is indeed a good way to do it. It's just better, due to the aging marks, to adjust expectations.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
Presenting El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron to a new audience and preserving it for future generations is a great thing, especially considering its cult status. Whether that audience will enjoy it is another matter entirely.
It's not a game for everyone, but it's one that we'll never get tired of recommending. If El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron HD Remaster manages to "click" for you, you'll never be able to forget this biblical hack and slash.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Playing El Shaddai portably feels right. The combat system is easy to get into and not having to deal with any camera system makes this game feel very accessible for action game newcomers. El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron HD Remaster is an audio and visual tour de force that you never forget. It makes sense why it was brought back after all these years.
El Shaddai feels genuinely more creative and interesting than a lot of the titles it would consider bedfellows today. It shares a place with the likes of ICO, Nier, and Panzer Dragoon in its arcane design and historically inspired symbolism. Elsewhere, it borrows from the likes of Okami and Mizuguchi's Rez for its abstract, acid-trip beauty. It's true that the combat can become routine, the platforming occasionally frustrate, and some of the boss encounters appear slightly samey, but it runs smoothly and assuredly across 11 visually astounding stages. El Shaddai, more than anything else, is a game of moments, and a lot of them. It's certainly one of the most intriguing titles in the action-adventure, hack-and-slash genre, and deserves the attention this time around that it never achieved on its original release.
If you missed it back in 2011, El Shaddai ASCENSION OF THE METATRON HD Remaster is a second chance to experience a MUST PLAY in gaming.
I looked forward to giving an game like El Shaddai a try, but its aged...everything...fails to hold my attention.
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is truly a unique game, and despite its bland gameplay, feels like a genuine cult classic.
After 10 years it is still fresh-looking third-person action adventure and platformer.
Review in Slovak | Read full review
Its setting and story are basically unheard of in gaming, given how devs are not exactly comfortable tackling Abrahamic religions in this kind of medium. As a concept, it’s fantastic. As an action game, it’s quite shallow.
I can't imagine anybody was clamouring for it, but I'm still happy El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron was ported to PC. It's a shame when games are lost to time, and even though this one has some clunky combat and repetitive gameplay, it's still one of the most artistically inventive and stunningly original games of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 era.
It has the occasional wrinkle of age, but don’t let that put you off. El Shaddai is a mad, colourful and beautiful adventure that, whilst not quite Devil May Cry levels of greatness, is still very entertaining. Don’t overthink it, go in and enjoy the pseudo-silliness of this over-the-top brawler.
A basic port of a cult classic action adventure that's still as visually stunning as ever, but also retains repetitive combat that makes exploration a real chore at times.
If you like weird games, play El Shaddai. If you like games with incredibly creative visuals and great music, play El Shaddai. If you like games where half-naked men beat the crap out of each other for very poorly explained reasons, play El Shaddai. The only reasons you should skip this title are if you hate platforming or you need the plots of your games to actually make sense.
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron uses numerous elements to create a unique experience. Accompanying Enoch on his journey to defeat the fallen angels is quite engaging because of the constant mix of 3D action, platforming and combat. The impactful art direction is one of the highlights, and the title is not afraid to dare with drastic changes in visual style and gameplay. But not everything is wonderful: the simplicity of the systems and mechanics can make things a little boring, after all most of the adventure is very linear and the battles are repetitive. Furthermore, the PC port is extremely basic, lacking customization options. In the end, El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is an exotic and imperfect game that is hard to forget.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
El Shaddai has a lot to offer players with its art direction and stunning visuals though I found it difficult to appreciate them when dealing with graphical issues, generic combat, and a ham-fisted story. This port should have been a great introduction to new players and giving veterans a clean way to view it. Instead, we are left looking at a port with missed potential in various ways.
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is a strange experience. The platforming is basic and the combat gets tedious after a while, but the surreal presentation of its loose interpretation of the Book of Enoch makes it an intriguing journey from start to finish, with beautiful art and music that help it stand out. If repetitive combat doesn’t bother you, it’s well worth a look for the spectacle alone.
El Shaddai: Ascension of Metatron has always been a title I've enjoyed but often struggled to recommend. It's repetitive due to shallow combat and few and far between set pieces. Visually the game is untouchable, but in such a way it almost damages the game by trying to make such rich visuals with an experience that's otherwise average at every turn. It's not all bad, the game does what it sets out to do and provides a memorable and unique experience. It's just a pity that shallow gameplay and a lack of significant improvement in the PC version knock it down somewhat. I do think gamers who enjoy more cult classic titles will find enough to love here to justify a few nights of angel chasing.